Uganda has unveiled a long-term partnership with the World Bank aimed at accelerating the country’s journey to upper-middle-income status, with Finance Minister Henry Musasizi reaffirming government’s commitment to disciplined economic management and the ambitious target of building a $500 billion economy.
Speaking during the launch of the Uganda Country Partnership Framework and the Public Finance Review at the Golden Tulip Hotel on Monday, Musasizi said the new partnership provides a strong roadmap for driving sustainable economic transformation through strategic investments, private sector growth and improved governance.
The Uganda Country Partnership Framework is a 10-year operational strategy that outlines how the World Bank Group will support Uganda’s ambition of becoming a modern, prosperous, and competitive upper-middle-income country by 2040. The framework aligns with the government’s Tenfold Growth Strategy and the Fourth National Development Plan (NDP IV), with plans to mobilise and unlock private capital worth $3.8 billion (Shs13.7 trillion).
The strategy places emphasis on wealth creation, job creation, stronger economic governance, improved healthcare and education, enhanced infrastructure and building a more productive and inclusive private sector capable of driving long-term growth.
Launching the two reports, Musasizi said government remains focused on implementing reforms that will sustain macroeconomic stability while ensuring economic growth translates into better livelihoods for Ugandans.
“Our focus going forward will remain on prudently executing the Tenfold Growth Strategy to turn Uganda into a $500-billion-dollar economy (about Shs1,800 trillion), enforcing absolute discipline, enhancing revenue mobilisation, wealth creation, and oil revenue management,” Musasizi said.
The minister noted that despite a series of global economic shocks in recent years, Uganda has continued to register resilience through prudent fiscal management.
“Uganda has maintained macroeconomic stability, strengthened public financial management, enhanced fiscal transparency, improved debt management, expanded domestic revenue mobilisation and reinforced public investment management,” he said.
Musasizi urged all stakeholders to ensure that public investment delivers meaningful results for ordinary Ugandans rather than simply increasing government expenditure.
“As we scale up public investment, let us remember that development is not measured by the size of our budgets, the number of projects approved or policies adopted but by the lives transformed, opportunities created and lasting impact on citizens,” he said.
The newly launched Public Finance Review offers an assessment of Uganda’s fiscal position as the country prepares to enter the oil production era.
The report notes that while oil revenues present significant opportunities, sustainable prosperity will depend on strengthening public institutions, improving the efficiency of public expenditure, enhancing domestic revenue mobilisation and sustaining investments in human capital.
Speaking at the same event, World Bank Division Director for Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia and Uganda, Qimiao Fan said the institution is shifting from supporting isolated development projects to implementing comprehensive sector-wide interventions that will deliver broader and more sustainable impact.
“The World Bank is moving away from isolated projects to comprehensive sector-wide interventions,” Fan said.
He added that the Bank is fully committed to supporting Uganda’s transformation agenda.
The launch of the Uganda Country Partnership Framework and the Public Finance Review marks another milestone in Uganda’s long-term economic planning, with government and the World Bank seeking to leverage private investment, strengthen public financial management and accelerate inclusive growth as the country pursues its Vision 2040 aspirations.
